by George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

by George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Even now, after the whirlwind has subsided, Jake Spavital does not need much time to do the math. When people talk these days with the Texas A&M offensive coordinator, what percentage of the questions are still about Johnny Manziel?

That includes the current query, of course. But reporters, fans, friends and anyone else, it's the same.

"All questions end up reverting back to Johnny," Spavital says, and he chuckles.

In that regard, nothing has changed, even as Manziel has moved on. Spavital and the other A&M coaches watch, bemused, as Johnny Football creates buzz, through no fault of his own, in moving up and down mock draft boards. But they understand he'll remain the fulcrum for almost any discussion of Texas A&M football in the near future, as in:

Twenty victories in the past two seasons have sparked a sense of momentum surrounding the program that might be unprecedented in the modern era. For evidence, there's another stellar recruiting class signed last month. Even more visible are the three cranes sitting on what used to be the grass surface of Kyle Field, part of the $450 million project underway continuously (really: crews are working around the clock) to renovate and expand the stadium to 102,500 seats.

There were several factors in the surge, including Sumlin's arrival and the excitement over moving to the SEC. It probably did not hurt that at the same time, rival Texas was unraveling.

But no one downplays Manziel's impact. Texas A&M's rebirth coincided with the birth of the legend of Johnny Football. That win in 2012 against Alabama, the Heisman Trophy, even Manziel's epic 2013 offseason contributed to the buzz surrounding the program.

"The one thing that Johnny brought us was being on TV every day," A&M defensive coordinator Mark Snyder says. "Every time I looked up. It was amazing."

Thus, any talk of momentum and expansion has to include Manziel, and perhaps to begin with him. And the question has to be asked: Will it end with his departure?

Sumlin laughs. Ever confident, he recites a partial list of quarterbacks he has coached, whether as a head coach or an assistant. Included: Drew Brees, Jason White, Sam Bradford, Case Keenum. They all had different styles. They all won. Extrapolated, Sumlin's point is that in college football, changing rosters is among the few constants.

"We've been around really, really good quarterbacks everywhere we've been," he says, "whether it's here or Houston or Oklahoma or Purdue. At what point is it not just coincidence? I'll just put it that way."

But perhaps none had the impact on his program that Manziel had on Texas A&M. On that note, none of the three quarterbacks trying to replace him should be expected to be Manziel, or to have his impact.

Manziel's replacement will emerge from a competition currently underway during spring practice among senior Matt Joeckel, sophomore Kenny Hill and freshman Kyle Allen. They're listed by experience, though it wouldn't surprise anyone if Allen, a highly regarded recruit who enrolled in January, won the job, or if Hill is the starter when the season begins August 28 against South Carolina.

Snyder recalls how practices became a never-ending battle between quarterback and defensive coordinator. Manziel would study the defense and check into another play. Snyder would check into another defense. Manziel would respond, and so on, and it became an extracurricular chess match.

And then, of course, Manziel would do something to make Snyder shake his head and just say: "Johnny Football!" â?? which can be defined, Snyder says, as "the improvisation and the ability to throw the ball on the money with his body in 50 million different positions. Uncanny."

It's possible the combination of Manziel's talent, those mind-bending improv skills and his sheer competitiveness was the dominant factor in Texas A&M's surge from a Big 12 also-ran to a nationally relevant factor in the SEC. It's possible that the building project Sumlin undertook â?? as opposed to the actual construction at Kyle Field â?? was pushed far ahead of schedule by Manziel, and that we'll only now begin to learn how far the Aggies have come in two years.

The 49-year-old head coach is sitting in his corner office in the Bright Football Complex just beyond the south end zone. Like the rest of the football facility, the head coach's office is scheduled for renovation. But they'll do it last, he says, because other items â?? the players' locker room, the athletic training area, the weight room â?? take higher priority.

"How do you move from a team to a program?" Sumlin asks, and then answers: "That's through recruiting and player development. Those go hand in hand."

Texas A&M's past three recruiting classes ranked among the best nationally. Last month, the Aggies finished ranked No. 6 by Rivals.com â?? behind three other SEC teams, including SEC West rivals Alabama and LSU.

Sumlin notes that although A&M expects three players â?? Manziel, left tackle Jake Matthews and receiver Mike Evans â?? to be first-rounders in the NFL Draft, those were also the only Aggies invited to the NFL Scouting Combine. Alabama had 12 players there, LSU had 11 â?? and Vanderbilt had five.

"Our talent level and our depth have to continue to increase for us to be who we want to be," Sumlin says. "We've made some strides, but we're not there â?? and it wasn't gonna happen overnight, based on where we were."

Half of the reconstruction and expansion of Kyle Field is scheduled to be completed before the Aggies' home opener Sept. 6 against Lamar. Next offseason, they'll tackle the rest. By kickoff in 2015, the goal is to have the biggest stadium in Texas, and the best venue in the country.

The schedule might fit the goals of the football program that inhabits the stadium, too. A&M could be good next fall. The defense, which as a young, thin bunch was a liability for most of last season, returns nine starters and should be improved, in part because so many youngsters who played too early gained plenty of experience. Despite losing Manziel, Matthews, Evans and three other offensive starters, Spavital expects a talent rise to make things a little easier for the next quarterback.

"I feel like we have the supporting cast that these kids can lean on for now," Spavital says.

But Texas A&M might be even better in 2015. Projecting that far ahead into the building process, it's reasonable, based on the current roster and assuming continued recruiting momentum, to assume a deep, talented bunch might be led by a talented, experienced quarterback.